On a summer night in 1957 Louisiana, fourteen-year-old Danielle “Dani” Trant lies in bed listening to Elvis Presley records. Her older sister, Maureen, steps quietly onto the sleeping porch, dons her nightgown, and brushes her hair. Before falling asleep, the sisters confide in each other: Dani wishes people would stop treating her like a baby, while Maureen, soon to attend Duke University, confesses to feeling scared about leaving home. In the morning, the girls’ pregnant mother, Abigail, urges them to get ready for church. Dani is envious that her father, Matthew, gets to go fishing instead of attending religious services. After church, teenager Billy Sanders greets the family and confirms his date with Maureen that evening. When the Trant women arrive home, Dani shirks her responsibilities and goes skinny-dipping at the nearby swimming hole. There, she is startled when a teenage boy jumps into the water. They argue about who has the right to be on the property, until Dani agrees to leave. She runs home, where her father reprimands her for not helping out around the house. The exasperated girl goes to her room and plays her favorite Elvis record, passionately embracing her pillow. Later, Billy Sanders stops by to take Maureen to a dance. Matthew Trant lectures the boy about curfew, but as the teenagers drive away, Abigail tells her husband to quit worrying. Just then, a truck pulls up to the farmhouse, and Abigail welcomes her dear old friend, Marie Foster, back to the neighboring property. Abigail presents Dani and Dani’s toddler sister, Missy, as Marie introduces her three sons, one of whom is seventeen-year-old Court Foster, the teenage boy Dani encountered at the swimming hole. Dani and Court eye each other warily. Over a picnic lunch, Abigail expresses sympathy toward Marie, whose husband died a short while ago in a work-related accident. Dani notes that the ice cream maker is not working, and Matthew Trant sends Court and Dani into town to buy rock salt. The teenagers squabble about having to go together. However, Court’s reckless driving thrills the tomboy, and by the time they arrive in town, their friendship is assured. Meanwhile, at the dance, Maureen fends off the inappropriate advances of Billy Sanders’s father. She asks her date if they can leave, and Billy, thinking she wants to make out, drives to a secluded location. However, Maureen has no interest in sexual activities with Billy, and the frustrated boy drives her home. The next day, a love-struck Dani returns to the swimming hole, pleased to find Court already there. Dani’s affection for the boy deepens, and she asks Maureen to teach her about kissing. On a hot day, Dani invites Court to go swimming, but the hard-working young man says he cannot go until nighttime. Dani waits until her family falls asleep before sneaking out of the house to meet Court at the swimming hole. There, the two almost kiss, but Court insists that Dani is too young. Dani runs home, crying. The onset of a storm awakens Abigail Trant, who goes outside to look for her daughter. The pregnant woman trips, injuring her head. Matthew rushes his wife to the hospital, but the doctors refuse to let him stay. The distraught man returns home and whips Dani with his belt. The next day, Court visits the Trant family with a care package from Marie, but Dani treats him coldly. After Dani and her father visit Abigail in the hospital, they reconcile. Later, Dani runs over to the Foster property and asks Court to go for a swim. The boy agrees and follows her to the pond. Although the two agree to be “just friends,” they share their first kiss. At her father’s urging, Dani invites her “crush” to dinner at the Trant residence. There, Court is instantly smitten with the college-bound Maureen. Dani grows sullen as Court and Maureen flirt with each other at the dinner table. A few days later, Dani professes her love for Court, but the young man does not return her sentiment. Later, he drives to the Trant residence, where Maureen is home alone. When he tries to kiss her, Maureen admonishes him. Court insists that he is not Dani’s boyfriend, and Maureen yields to his advances. Just then, the phone rings and Maureen learns that her mother is in labor. The next day, Dani finds Court working at the Foster property. She tells him about her new baby sister, and apologizes for her emotional declaration. Court is standoffish and ignores her. As the days pass, Maureen and Court fall in love. On the day of Abigail’s arrival home from the hospital, Maureen and Trant lie naked in a meadow together. The young woman realizes she should be at home and rushes back to the Trant residence. Noticing her sister’s disheveled appearance, Dani deduces where she has been. The young girl runs off, furious. Later, Court drives his tractor through a field, daydreaming about the beautiful Maureen. While reaching for his hat, he falls from the tractor and into the path of the oncoming harrow. Marie Foster, on her way to the field with Court’s lunch, finds her son’s body. Just then, a breathless Dani emerges from the trees. Mrs. Foster tells her to stay away, and Dani rushes home to inform her father about the accident. Hours later, Matthew Trant returns with the news that Court is dead. He embraces Dani, trying to console her. Meanwhile, Maureen retreats into the house alone, sobbing. On the day of Court’s funeral, Dani watches from afar as the casket is lowered into the ground. That night, Maureen begs her sister’s forgiveness, but Dani rejects the request. In the morning, Dani goes fishing with her father, who encourages her to make amends with Maureen. Later, Dani finds her heartbroken sister at Court’s graveside. She pulls Maureen into her arms, comforting her. That night on the sleeping porch, the sisters look at the moon and vow to always support each other.